OAKLAND — A 19-year-old Antioch man was arrested and charged with murdering his own sister as well as her boyfriend, court records show.
Horatio Lawrence II was charged with murdering Eric Brown Sr., 34, and Arnika Barriga, 31, in the Sept. 13 shooting in Oakland. The charging records say he was arrested Oct. 5 in Antioch. He’s remained in Santa Rita Jail on a no-bail hold ever since.
In an interview with police, Lawrence admitted responsibility for the shooting but claimed he didn’t mean to shoot his sister, according to a probable cause statement written by Oakland police Det. Kyle Cardana.
“Lawrence waived his rights and stated that he armed himself to defend his sister (Arnika Barriga) from her boyfriend (Eric Brown),” Cardana wrote. “Lawrence stated he fired multiple rounds striking both subjects. Lawrence stated that he then fled the scene and discarded the firearm.”
Both victims were found shortly before 3:15 p.m. Sept. 13, at the complex in the 3400 block of 68th Avenue after officers responded to reports of ShotSpotter activity. When officers arrived, they found two victims suffering from gunshot wounds. Despite life-saving measures before firefighters and paramedics’ arrival, the two were pronounced dead at the scene.
Lawrence has two arrests in Pittsburg months before the shooting, on suspicion of spousal abuse in May and of burglary and violating a court order in August.
The charging records contain enhancements for “personal and intentionally” shooting both victims, which will add time to Lawrence’s sentence if he’s convicted. Lawrence doesn’t yet have a preliminary hearing scheduled, where a judge will review evidence and decide if there is enough to order him to stand trial.
Source: www.mercurynews.com